JANUARY 2012
Burned By The Wind And Surf Life Outside
By Doug Humphreys
We’ve reached a point in our over-evolved society where it is almost possible to spend no time outside. We can walk from our home into our garage and get in our car before ever open- ing the garage door. We can drive to the parking garage of our workplace and beneath the cover of a concrete roof we can make it to the safety of an ele- vator and ultimately the clean, climate-controlled halls of our office building without taking a breath of unfiltered air. We must still endure expo-
sure to the elements when we walk the 50 yards from our car to the automatic doors of the grocery store or the entrance to a restaurant, and, as I think about it, there might still be a few sports that are played on fields or courts that allow wind and rain to be felt on the skin. But if we wanted to, with-
out trying very hard, we could spend the vast majority of our time protected from the dis- comfort of the outdoors, se- curely settled into a life that stays at 70 degrees Fahrenheit regardless of the season. How horribly boring and unfulfilling a life spent inside would be. I can’t imagine a life where
I didn’t feel sand between my toes and smell the salt in a sea breeze. I want to be burned by wind and sun; I want to sweat and swat flies and I want to shiver in freezing tempera- tures. I want to test myself against
Mother Nature, a test where passing means survival and failing means something else. I want to release the beast with- in and not pretend that I’ve evolved beyond my instincts. I need to leave the constructs and rules of men behind me, and embrace all that is wild. When I return, out of necessity, to what is civilized I’ll know that with my dirty hands comes
a clean soul. Most importantly I want my
children to know that this life is not about gaming or texting or whatever TV show is on next. I want them to see the sunrise from the top of a mountain, and feel it. I want them to scream with painful delight after diving from a dock into a spring-fed lake. I want them to eat some- thing they grew or caught or killed themselves. I want them to know that they are animals, and that no amount of higher intelligence can separate them from the environment around them. We are in a new year, sorting
through what we did right or wrong last year. We are decid- ing how we can make ourselves better. We are trying to figure out what it is we can do that will make 2012 better than 2011. This year, as I do every year,
I will make a commitment to a life outside as much as possible. I will reaffirm my commitment to making sure my kids know that they are animals and en- sure that they not only spend time outside, but that they know how to do it safely and respectfully. My own list of things to do
outside in 2012 includes trips away from home, with an annu- al trip to the beach and a hunt- ing trip to the Wyoming Range just south of Yellowstone. But the vast majority of my time outside will be spent in and around Jefferson County doing activities that are available to everyone. Canoeing and fishing with
the kids will continue to be a go-to activity—that thing to do when you have nothing to do. The Opequon, Potomac, and Antietam make this an easy and convenient activity, and it’s too much fun to ever get old. My son is now old enough to experience the whitewater of the Shenandoah, and we look
forward to paddling a ducky through Bull Falls, Skull Rock, and Whitehorse. We will continue to hike Maryland Heights and walk the C&O Canal, but we’ll add the goal of section hiking the Appa- lachian Trail from the border of Pennsylvania to the border of West Virginia. I was recently reminded by a friend that hik- ing in the snow is the best hik- ing there is. He’s right, and at some point this year I will hike something somewhere that is covered in snow. I will enjoy the simplest of Jefferson County outdoor activ- ities by sledding at night in the light of a bonfire on our first winter snow and coaching my AYSO team The Black Panthers come spring. And when I need a moment to clear my head, I’ll sit on a bench in a Jefferson County park and watch those funny animals called people. Here’s to your health, hap-
piness and prosperity in 2012. And here’s to all of us working in a little life outside in the New Year.
15 LET IT SNOW!
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www.steppinoutss.com 110 West German Street Shepherdstown, WV 25443
Here’s to 2012!! 304-876-3336
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February 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 & 19
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